Silver Dollar Fairgrounds gets $30 million for a new resiliency center
A banner reading "WELCOME RACE FANS" near the front entrance of the Silver Dollar Speedway off of Fair Street in Chico, Calif. (Jessica Shippelhoute / KRCR)
CHICO, Calif. — The annual Silver Dollar Fair began in Chico Thursday evening, but with help from the State of California, there will be much more than a fair at the site soon.
Silver Dollar Fairgrounds is getting $30 million in funding from the state for a “Resiliency and Event Center.”
The purpose of the center is to enhance the site’s readiness for emergency response and will include major improvements to facilities for the Fair and other community events year-round.
The Fairgrounds served as a base camp for the Camp Fire, Dixie Fire, Oroville Spillway Emergency, and the COVID-19 Pandemic, so officials representing Governor Newsom’s office chose this site for the largest grant in the state to improve emergency readiness.
Michael Flores, State Secretary of Fairs and the Department of Food and Agriculture, said that Chico was chosen for a number of reasons, including its ”size, demographics, and location.”
“It just rose to the top,” Flores said Thursday.
Of the 12 fairs in the state that received funding, Chico's got the largest grant.
The new Center plans to break ground in 2024.
